MANCHESTER — Home turf played a major role during Derryfield of Manchester's 4-1 victory over Sunapee in a battle between two undefeated Division IV boys' soccer teams on Wednesday afternoon.

Their home pitch is 80 yards wide by 116 yards long and the Cougars used every inch of the plush green real estate, avenging last season's quarterfinal-round loss to the Lakers.

Spreading across the entire pitch, Derryfield passes ran Sunapee defenders ragged while creating open space from which to strike bullets on net.

“We weren't ready for this big field. Our players needed to adapt. They didn't and Derryfield beat us pretty good,” said Sunapee coach Jack Iacopino, after his team dropped to 2-1.

“I love big space,” said Derryfield coach Jeff Cousineau, after his team improved to 5-0 overall and 4-0 at home, where it has outscored guests 28-1. “The big space allows more options and many teams feel lost once they step on it and begin playing.”

When Sunapee defenders held snug to their marks, Derryfield passed to open space. When Sunapee sagged back, the Cougars attacked via dribble and passed to open space as Sunapee sagged toward the ball carrier.

“The whole idea is to pull out of open space so that you can run into it at the same time the ball gets there,” said Cousineau.

Jared Schoneberger's long pass toward the corner sprung Derryfield's leading scorer, Griffin Phaneuf, for an acrobatic breakaway score in the 23rd minute. A flurry of passes found Matt Milne alone in the box, where he was fouled and subsequently drilled a penalty kick. Derryfield held a 2-0 lead at intermission.

More of the same followed in the second half. Sunapee attempted to take away passes to the corners, but Schoneberger found an opening at midfield, drilling a 35-yard laser inside the near post at 50:00. Phaneuf's diagonal pass sprung Austin Hammer cutting from the weak side for the final goal at 69:00.

The Cougars controlled the ball for large portions of the match and responded quickly on Sunapee bids for a counterattack. Laker shots were few and far between. Noah Skarin headed home a free kick offering from Kevin Parsons at 58:00. Teammates Alex Gioldassis and Matt Emmond managed shots on goal.

“We didn't build anything with short passes and resorted to long balls that were ineffective on a big field like this,” said Iacopino. “Our home field is nowhere near this large. No excuses. They beat us.”

Cousineau believes Derryfield plays big even on smaller pitches. “Proper player spacing creates open space even in tight places,” he said.

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Eric Emmerling may be reached at eemmerling@unionleader.com.